Growing up, my father was a college administrator. Now married to a high school principal, August has continued to be that quiet before the storm, that period of reflection before the rush of the fall semester. August through Labor Day has always been the run up to the "new year" for me and a time for resolutions and plans.

So what are nonprofits doing in August? Most are planning for a VERY busy September through December. And all are thinking about how to engage volunteers in their important work.

--Making-It-Home is gearing up to furnish the new Veterans apartments in Emerson in September;

--Opening days for Bergen LEADS, Teen LEADS and College LEADS are being finalized;

-- And we are planning the Fall Volunteer Fair to be held on September 12th at the Paramus Park Mall.

So in the dog days of summer, the quiet before that first school bell rings, as you curl up with the last stack of beach novels and magazine articles, we hope you will also think about volunteering this fall. And remember two things:

"Volunteers do not necessarily have the time; they just have the heart."

--Elizabeth Andrew

AND

"Everybody can be great. Because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve... You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love."

--Martin Luther King, Jr

Enjoy the Dog Days of Summer,

Welcome to the Bergen Volunteer Center

The Bergen Volunteer Center turns caring into meaningful action by engaging volunteers to meet community needs.